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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. prune — to trim
  3. pound — a weight
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — the tool
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. season — in sport
  11. vault — a safe
  12. court — of a king
  13. prune — to trim
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. court — of law
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. season — of the year
  18. saw — past of 'see'

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com